Digital Commons Network^™

Cognitive Video Streaming, Devaki Rani Pasupuleti

Master's Theses

Video-on-demand (VoD) streaming services are becoming increasingly popular due to their flexibility to allow users to access their favorite video contents anytime, anywhere from a wide range of access devices such as smart phones, computers and TV. The content providers rely on highly satisfied subscribers for revenue generation and there has been significant efforts in developing approaches to “estimate” the quality of experience (QoE) of VoD subscribers. But a key issue is that QoE is not defined, appropriate proxies needs to be found for QoE, via the streaming metrics (the quality of service (QoS) metrics) that are largely based on …

Wavelet-Based Feature Extraction Methodology For Pattern Classification In Engineering Applications, Andre A. Silva

Master's Theses

Feature extraction is fundamental in the framework of pattern recognition. In classification applications where raw data is collected from scientific experiments or simulations, the resulting data may have been exposed to noise, excited by external dynamics, or affected by uncertainties not accounted for during the data acquisition process. Furthermore the data can be high dimensional, which can hinder the accuracy of decision algorithms if additional dimensions of the data make the patterns non-separable, not to mention the added computational complexity burden to train such algorithms. The objective of this research is to understand how specially designed features can improve the …

Evaporation Of Binary Mixtures And Precision Measurement By Crystal Resonator, Hanyu Song

Master's Theses

Theoretical and experimental investigations are presented for the precision measurement of evaporation kinetics of binary mixtures using a quartz crystal resonator. A thin layer of light alcohol mixture including a volatile (methanol) and a much less volatile (1-butanol) components is deployed on top of a crystal resonator for the evaporation experiment. A one-dimensional theoretical model is developed to describe the underlying mass transfer and interfacial transport phenomena. Along with the theoretical analysis, the transient evaporation kinetics, moving interface, and the stratification of viscosity of the liquid mixture during evaporation can be simultaneously measured by the impedance response of the shear …

Client Perceptions Of Engagement In Child Welfare And Housing Services, Katherine Bryce

Master's Theses

For families to benefit from services, they must be engaged. A number of factors in child welfare contribute to client engagement, among them individual, parent and family characteristics, contextual influences, and worker variables. The existing literature offers little insight into families who are experiencing problems in both child welfare and housing needs and how this affects engagement in services. This pilot study examined 10 families and compared client engagement across three conditions: (1) Intensive Supportive Housing for Families (ISHF), (2) Supportive Housing for Families (SHF), and (3) child welfare (DCF) business as (BAU), which differ systematically on elements including case …

C'Est La Tour De Babel - Le Film Multilingue: Un Défi De La Traduction Audiovisuelle Du 21e Siècle, Alexander S. Croxton Mr.

Master's Theses

No abstract provided.

The Integration Of Kinesthetic Learning Through The Math & Movement Program: Pilot Study 2015, Benjamin Ferder

Master's Theses

Purpose: The primary purpose of this pilot study was to verify that the use of kinesthetic learning (Math & Movement Program) in the classroom increases retention of multiplication facts at a greater rate than traditional drill and practice. The Math & Movement Program uses a kinesthetic learning-based approach for practicing, learning, and memorizing mathematics through the incorporation of bodily movement(s). Participants: The directors of the research project for the participating school district selected the sample of convenience. The population size of this study included 213 third and fourth grade students during the second half of the 2011-2012 school years. Data …

Pursuit Of Prosperity Below The Ocate Mesa, Derek Joseph Lefebre

Master's Theses

No abstract provided.

Investigating The Use Of A Positive Variation Of The Good Behavior Game In A High School Setting, Shauna Lynne

Master's Theses

The Good Behavior Game (GBG) is an example of an interdependent group contingency that can be used in classrooms to manage behavior. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of a positive variation of the GBG in which teachers attend to rule-following behavior, as opposed to the original version of the game in which teachers attend to rule-breaking behavior. In previous studies, researchers have demonstrated the effectiveness of the GBG in decreasing problematic behavior and/or increasing productive or desired behavior in classroom settings and in hospital settings and spanning preschool-aged, elementary toddlers to high school-aged adolescents. An …

The Masculine Mystique, Michael W. Chancellor Jr.

Master's Theses

This textual analysis explores the rhetoric of exclusion among homosexual men by analyzing DouchebagsofGrindr.com. The rhetoric of exclusion is used by some homosexual men in order to achieve hegemonic masculinity based on performance of gender, age, race, and physical characteristics to conquer stereotypes of femininity. The gay community utilizes civil rights rhetoric in order to create a dialogue about equality; unfortunately a disturbing number of gay community members frequently discount homosexual male minorities, perpetuating the notion that homosexual minorities are unattractive because they violate heteronormative gender performances. Analyzing the artifact DouchebagsofGrindr.com allows for a glimpse into the self-deprecating online behavior …

Lack Of Forgiveness Of Parents And Intimate Partner Violence, Hannah Doucette

Master's Theses

This study examined whether there was an association between lack of forgiveness for adverse events/circumstances perpetrated by parents and intimate partner violence (IPV) in emerging adulthood. Participants were 208 (85.6% female) 18- and 19-year-old undergraduate students. Participants were asked to describe events/circumstances in which they felt hurt by their parents when they were growing up. They then answered questions related to the most hurtful event including items pertaining to forgiveness. Participants also answered questions about the perpetration and victimization of IPV in the past year. The forgiveness-IPV relation was observed primarily for physical injury. Findings indicated that revenge seeking and …

Evaluation Of The Protein Recognition Properties Of Peptide Nucleic Acids, Crystal Cox Serrano

Master's Theses

The objective is to evaluate the ability of aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases (aaRS) to recognize the non-standard nucleic acid, PNA (peptide nucleic acid). PNA has immense potential in biomedical applications due to its increased thermostability and nuclease resistance over natural nucleic acids. PNA represents a superior alternative to natural nucleic acids in many biomedical applications due to its specificity, strong binding, and nuclease resistance. This study is the initial data set that indicates PNA are recognized by translation enzymes.

Zebrafish And Conditioned Place Preference: A Translational Model Of Drug Reward, Adam Douglas Collier

Master's Theses

Addiction and substance abuse commonly lead to negative outcomes such damaged health, domestic violence, child abuse, failure in school, and loss of employment. In the United States, hundreds of billions of dollars accrue annually in costs associated with healthcare, crime and lost productivity due to addiction. Efficacious treatments remain few in number, the development of which will be facilitated by comprehension of environmental, genetic, pharmacological and neurobiological mechanisms implicated in the pathogenesis of addiction. The zebrafish (Danio rerio) has recently gained popularity as a model organism of complex brain disorders (e.g., substance use disorder). Behavioral quantification within the conditioned place …

Dirt Roads And Dual-Sports: Geography And Mobility Of The Trans-America Trail, Joseph Samuel Miller

Master's Theses

The purpose of this research was to examine the mobility that has become associated with the Trans-America Trail (TAT). I explored the ways this motorcycle route changes across space, how the characteristics of adventure motorcyclists have created the representation of the TAT, and how the mobility of this route can be described in terms of Cresswell's six politics of mobility––motivation, speed, rhythm, route, experience, and friction. Using a mixed methods approach, I measured quantitative characteristics of the route using maps and GIS; I used ethnographic methods collected from my own trip across the TAT to understand the landscape and the …

Design Of A Non-Contact Home Monitoring System For Audio Detection Of Infant Apnea, Daniel T. White

Master's Theses

Infant apnea is a widespread condition in which infants fail to effectively breathe, and can lead to death. Clinical solutions exist for continuous monitoring of respirations in a hospital setting and requiring constant skin contact. This thesis investigates the construction of a proof of concept device that performs in-home monitoring without skin contact and with commonly available off-the-shelf components.

The device constructed used a directional microphone to detect breathing sounds, an omnidirectional microphone to detect ambient noise as a baseline to help isolate the breathing sounds, and LabVIEW software deployed on an inexpensive laptop computer to quantify incidents of apparent …

A Concept Validation Of A Magnetometry-Based Technology For Detecting Concealed Weapons In Vehicle Door Panels, Nar Vang

Master's Theses

Acts of insurgency have become an increasing threat resulting in extensive measures being taken by the law enforcement authorities to mitigate their devastating effects on human life and infrastructure. This thesis introduces a magnetometry-based information, and signal processing methodology for detecting concealed ferrous objects in vehicle body panels. From extensive literature research, it was observed that while magnetic sensors have been used in a variety of related applications, but they have not been extensively applied to the on-road detection of firearms and explosives concealed in vehicles. This study utilized an extensive experimental protocol for preliminary concept validation. The main idea …

The Roles Of Human Cytomegalovirus Us27 Gene Product During Virus Infection, Carolyn C. Tu

Master's Theses

Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) is a widespread pathogen that causes lifelong latent infection. Successful persistence of HCMV in healthy individuals involves extensive manipulation of host cellular functions and immune responses. HCMV encodes four genes for putative G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs): US27, US28, UL33, and UL78. The US28 gene product is a functional chemokine receptor that exhibits a variety of signaling outcomes. In contrast, the US27 gene product is an orphan with no known chemokine ligands. We have found that US27 triggers several biological effects: increased cellular proliferation, changes in gene expression, and enhanced signaling of cellular chemokine receptor CXCR4. Enhanced cell …

The Effects Of Tootling On Disruptive And Academic Behaviors In High School, John Dylan Ken Lum

Master's Theses

Considered the opposite of tattling, tootling is a procedure where students report their classmates’ positive behavior instead of inappropriate behavior. This study examined the effects of tootling on students’ behavior in three general education high school classrooms. An A-B-A-B withdrawal with follow-up design was used to assess the effects of the intervention on decreasing classwide disruptive behavior and increasing academically engaged behavior. Students wrote tootles anonymously on paper slips, and deposited them into a marked container. An interdependent group contingency procedure was used to create a class goal for the number of submitted tootles, which led to a class reward …

A Garden Locked, A Fountain Sealed: Female Virginity As A Model For Holiness In The Fourth Century, Lindsay Anne Williams

Master's Theses

Despite centuries of Christian theologians and lay Christians alike assigning and/or accepting an entrenched misogyny in the writings of Ambrose, Jerome, and Augustine, close examination of their work on its own terms and in its own time reveals that, in fact, they did not hold women in lesser esteem than men. Rather, time and again, in the writings of these Latin Doctors of the Church, women were promoted as exemplars of holiness and sanctity often in excess of their male counterparts and commonly as didactic tools used to lead their fellow Christians down a more righteous path. The following thesis …

Naturalists’ Perspectives On The Use Of Mobile Technology During A Nature Hike, Aubin Marishka Radzewicz St. Clair

Master's Theses

Naturalists act as our link between scientific knowledge and the public’s understanding of natural history and conservation efforts. In order for them to succeed, they need access to reference materials as well as up-to-date information (Mankin, Warner, & Anderson, 1999). Incorporating mobile technology (i.e. tablets) into naturalists’ endeavors in natural history and environmental education can be used as supportive and educational tools. My project investigated how newly trained naturalists used tablet technology while leading groups of children on nature hikes. I investigated naturalists’ views on the use of mobile technology as a tool during the hikes. My research was guided …

Elucidating The Molecular Function Of Reprolysin Metalloproteases In Tick-Host-Pathogen Interaction, Jaclyn Bo Williams

Master's Theses

Ticks are ectoparasites that attach to their host for many days to weeks, feeding to engorgement and continuing their species life cycle. The mechanisms behind the successful feeding and manipulation of host immune responses have been associated with the secretion of their specialized saliva. Tick saliva includes a variety of modulatory molecules that must disrupt and counteract defense mechanisms, including a variety of proteases. Reprolysin Metalloproteases, in the Zn²⁺ dependent family, is secreted as a proenzyme and is shown to have proteolytic activity, degrading fibrinogen and gelatinase activity, as well as disturbing homeostasis¹². Previous work with …

The Informative G-Prior Vs. Common Reference Priors For Binomial Regression With An Application To Hurricane Electrical Utility Asset Damage Prediction, Nathan R. Lally

Master's Theses

Eliciting appropriate prior information from experts for a statistical model is no easy task. Expressing this information in terms of hyperparameters of prior distributions on abstract model parameters can be nearly impossible, especially after data augmentation or transformation. In previous work on logistic and binomial regression models, Hanson et al. (2014) assert that ``experts are confident only in their assessment of the population as a whole'' and propose a version of the g-prior which effectively places a standard beta distributed prior on the overall population probability of success. We explore the efficacy of using the informed g-prior in a real …

Correction Of Precursor And Product Ion Relative Abundances To Standardize Cid Spectra And Improve Ecom50 Accuracy For Non-Targeted Metabolomics, Ritvik Dubey

Master's Theses

No abstract provided.

Hydrologic Changes During The Middle Miocene In Southwestern Montana Using Molecular Biomarkers Of Leaf Waxes, Jaclyn G. White

Master's Theses

No abstract provided.

Development Of An Interactive Wave Drag Capability For The Openvsp Parametric Geometry Tool, Michael Jon Waddington

Master's Theses

Minimizing wave drag is critical to successful and efficient transonic and supersonic flight. Area-ruling is the process of managing the cross-sectional area of an aircraft to lessen the wave drag experienced in flight. Effectively calculating the necessary areas for a given aircraft can be difficult, and existing tools for conducting a wave drag analysis often carry limitations in both functionality and availability.

In this work, the author utilized an existing parametric geometry tool named OpenVSP to create an interactive design tool for approximating zero-lift wave drag. Here, the wave drag calculation methodology used in industry for decades is combined with …

Self-Compassion And Mindfulness Differentially Predict Eating Behaviors Among Emerging Adults, Tosca Braun

Master's Theses

Objectives: Poor eating behaviors (EB) and food cravings (FC) represent risk factors for obesity and related outcomes. Mindfulness and self-compassion (SC) have been individually linked to healthful EB in prior research, representing salient intervention targets. While conceptualized as having health behavioral self-regulatory benefits, no research has examined these variables’ differential contributions to EB and FC.

Method: Participants were 283 university undergraduates (152 females; m. age = 19.1 + 1.6; m. BMI = 23.7 + 4.2 kg/m²). Multiple regression analyses in women (W) and men (M) assessed how validated measures of mindfulness and SC were associated with Fruit/Vegetable intake …

Efficiency And Safety Of A Continuous Rotation Instrumentation System And A Reciprocating Motion Instrumentation System: A Randomized Clinical Trial, Justin P. Farmer

Master's Theses

Introduction: It has been suggested that single-file reciprocating systems, such as WaveOne, are capable of more rapid root canal instrumentation compared to systems that utilize multi-file continuous rotation. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficiency and safety of WaveOne and ProTaper Next instrumentation systems in vivo in a randomized clinical trial. The null hypothesis was that no differences would be seen in canal preparation time, working length control, or occurrence of adverse events. Materials and Methods: A total of 89 teeth requiring primary non-surgical endodontic treatment were included in the study. Root canal therapy was performed per …

A Soil Additive To Reduce Runoff And Pollutants From Dairy Heavy Use Areas, Alexander J. Pivarnik

Master's Theses

No abstract provided.

Comparison Of The Effects Of Three Surgical Techniques On The Rate Of Orthodontic Tooth Movement In A Rat Model, Zachary T. Librizzi

Master's Theses

No abstract provided.

Analysis Of The United States Hop Market, Michael W. Dasso

Master's Theses

Hops are one of the four main ingredients used to produce beer. Many studies have been done to analyze the science behind growing and harvesting hops, creating hop hybrids, and how to brew beer with hops. However, there has been little research done revolving around the economic demand and supply model of the hop market. The objectives of this study are to create an econometric model of supply and demand of hops in the United States from 1981 to 2012, and to identify important exogenous variables that explain the supply and demand of hops using the two-stage least squares (2SLS) …

Aerodynamic Design And Structural Analysis Procedure For Small Horizontal-Axis Wind Turbine Rotor Blade, Dylan R. Perry

Master's Theses

This project accomplished two correlated goals of designing a new rotor blade to be used with the Cal Poly Wind Power Research Center, as well as defining the methodology required for the aerodynamic analysis of an optimized blade, the procedure required for generation of an accurate CAD model for the new blade geometry, and structural integrity verification procedure for the new blade via finite element analysis under several operating scenarios. The new rotor blades were designed to perform at peak efficiency at a much lower wind speed than the current CPWPRC rotor blades and incorporated a FEA verification process which …